Z61t Battery flashing amber light - error detected - on two batteries

I had this z61t for a year and a half and this is the second big problem i have with it. It had a board failiure withing 3 months of having purchased.

5 days ago i noticed the battery led, started quickly flashing amber, i unplugged the power cord and the laptop inmediately died. Dust it, cleaned the battery connectors, and the system continued the quick amber flash. We have two more of this at the office, so i borrowed another battery, that I'm certain works with same results, except that this time the amber flashing seems a bit slower.

I installed the Lenovo Power Manaer, and I get an error detected message (big red x) on the battery. I don't think the problem is the battery, and the system is out of warranty now. I have been able to use the system with the power cord, but i'm constantly in the move and do need to get the system to sleep to transport it.

I'M HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM NOW and I'm very disappointed and so embarrassed with my Z61T.

I got it on December 2006 from the U.S. and have had two MAJOR problems since.

The first problem was with my hard drive. It happened less than a year from when I got this laptop. It wasn't explained to me what the problem was. Because it was under warranty, I was able to get a new hard drive. I couldn't use Rescue and Recovery because the it wouldn't work!

And now there's a problem with my battery. Yesterday morning I opened my laptop to check e-mails and it worked. About 2 hours later when I got to the office, my laptop suddnely wouldn't turn on. When i attached it to the power source, that's when I was able to turn it on. Now it says that my battery has "irreparable damage."

I'm just very frustrated and sad about what's happening to my laptop when I take such good care of it. I even brag to my colleagues and friends that the reason I got it is because a ThinkPad is sturdy and not prone to problems. I was even more disappointed when i found out that my boss' ThinkPad, which is more than 5 years, hasn't had any problem at all. My brother's HP-Compaq hasn't been brought to the shop in the last 2years since he got it. WHY IS IT THAT MY THINKPAD HAS SO MANY PROBLEMS??? This is so frustrating. I really had such high admiration for the IBM THINKPAD but now all I'm getting is one disappointment after another...

WHAT'S WRONG? IS THERE A QUALITY DEFECT IN THE NEW THINKPAD LAPTOPS? Why are the old laptops more durable and less prone to damages and errors?

I followed all the instructions suggested by Lenovo, installing the newest software to determine error on battery, and the problem remains the same, with the batteries flashing amber and the app reporting error on battery.

I verified the batteries on a working z61t (we got 4 at the office) and they work OK on other laptops. Additionally it also seems that the fan in the laptop is not working anymore. I'm baffled because as system admin, i got was supposed to be the nicest thinkpad, it does have a better screen resolution and a few upgraded options, but the problem is, it doesn't work with a battery now.

I was hoping the problem was the battery, since is the easiest to resolve, but now i'm concerned that Thinkpads are just not worth buyin anymore. Regardless, I still need to solve my current issue.

If you have checked the battery in other Z61t systems and have proper operation, then it sounds like the charging circuit in your system could be bad. I assume you have also checked the output of your AC adapater with a digital volt meter?

If the AC and battery check out, then it's likely the motherboard which would need to be replaced.

I would suggest you contact service. If you are outside warranty, then you may want to explore your options in terms of purchasing out of warranty parts through Lenovo or external sources and replacing the board yourself, or sending the system in for out of warranty service through the Lenovo repair center or one of our service partners. You can visit our support site and put in the model type of your system, and then choose the part list link to find the FRU (service part) number for the system board / planar.

I certainly appreciate your trepidation upon experiencing this failure outside of warranty. Extended warranties are often cost effective ways to extend the useful life of systems.

Lulu,

I believe your battery is defective and may be covered by the special service tip. HERE is the link. While I understand your desire to express your disappointment with this matter, I hope that you will benefit from the advice offered to you here.

I had the very same problem. The new battery from Lenovo would cost $150+! So I tried the after market from EBAY for just $19 including shipping and with return policy (minimum risk, you loose $5 for return shipping that's it) and took a chance. YEY, it worked just fine. Try it out.

After only using my laptop as a 'desktop' via the plug-in adapter for years, I decided I needed to purchase a new battery as I am planning on doing some traveling. A during my search, I found this discussion which described the issue I was originally experiencing. I looked up my battery's FRU part number and it appears on the defective battery list. Will Lenovo still replace my battery even though the battery replacement program/offer (special service tip) has expired (per support website notice below) http://support.lenovo.com/en_US/detail.page?LegacyDocID=MIGR-67765 Unfortunately my laptop and the defective battery are also no longer under warranty. I feel like it would only be fair for Lenovo to replace it as when I was under warranty, I was never notified that there was a problem with the battery and I even interacted with several support reps. -Ty